Dark & White / RaceKit Mini Mountain Marathon Series - Round 3
Summer Sun at the RaceKit Mini Mountain Marathon
Jeremy Sainter (Dark & White) / 21.04.2011
As competitors perused the master map they wondered what the course planners had in store for them. Whatever it was there would be lots of stiff climbs with Lose Hill, Hollins Cross, Mam Tor and Cave Dale all forming part of the competition area.
So it was no surprise when there was a lot of head scratching as people collected their map at the start. They had 21 controls worth 280 points to choose from and navigate between. At first glance it looked pretty straightforward with a wide outer loop to collect all the big points but you know it just wasn’t going to be that easy!
There were little tempters everywhere trying to drag you off your chosen route and what to do about those lower level controls in the valley bottom? Anyone thinking about trying to clear the course would have work out how to get those blighters as well. Was it better to drop off the hill to pick them up or do a lower level inner circuit?
So to the off and there was a steady stream of starters right from 8.45 a.m. all eager to get out and avoid the full heat of the sun later in the day. Out on the course the tracks were dare we say it bone dry and the going was good to (very) firm.
What a difference a month makes, after the mean and moody weather of the previous event in Chapel, the sun had brought out walkers and mountain bikers in their droves! Hollins Cross was more like Piccadilly Circus than a hill top in Derbyshire, with a Marie Curie walk, mountain bikers and several Duke of Edinburgh groups all adding to the throng. But everyone was in good spirits as they ducked and weaved around each other, the only difference was that the MMM competitors where more intent on staring at their maps than chatting about the weather and where to next.
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